Safety-lam p



(No Model.)

une 8, 1897.

Si l i li lq l| Jl w d i" ii Patented UNITED STATES PATENT EEicE.

XVILLIAM lVAhlGEL, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

SAFETY-LAM P.

SPECIFCATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 583,959, dated J une 8, 1897. Application filed September 5, 1896. Serial No. 604,984. (No model.)

To all zohoin t ntzf concern:

Be it known that I, TILLIAM WAEGEL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Safety- Lamps, of which the following is a specification.

My present invention relates to a new and useful improvement in safety-lam ps for mines and other places where explosive gases exist, so that sho uld said lamp become broken ,th ereby exposing the incandescent film, the passage of the electric current will he instantaneously cut olf and said film surrounded by a non-combustible extinguishing-gas, thus preventing the explosive gas from coming in 4contact with said film until the latter has cooled.

With these ends in view this invention consists in the details of construction and combination of elements hereinafter set forth,and then specifically designated by the claims.

In order that those skilled in the art to which this invention appertains may understand how to make and use the same, the construction and operation will now be described in detail, referring to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ot' this specifi cation, in which- Figure l is a section at the line c :c of Fig. 2; Fig. 2, a bottom plan View of the headblock arranged to support the several parts of the lamp; Fig. 3, a central vertical section of a slightly-modified form of applying my invention; Fig. d, a bottom plan of the headblocl; of such modiiications; Fig. 5, a detail plan of socket used in modification, and Fig. G a side elevation of the same.

In carrying out this invention as shown in Figs. l and 2, A represents the head-block, which is of a suitable insulating material and here shown as circular in shape, and from this block depends an ordinary incandescent lamp B, having one end of the film C thereof in electrical Contact with the strip D and the opposite end of this iilm in contact with the socket E, which latter in turn is secured to the strip F. The strip F has a contact-point G formed thereon, against which the springstrip II is adapted to bear, and this lastnamed strip is secured to the head-block at I and is connected by the wire J to the switcharm K. The strip D is connected by the wire L to one feed-wire, while the other feedwire is connected to the opposite switch-arm M, and between these two arms isthe bridge N, arranged to be operated with the ordinary key located in the casing of the lamp.

O represents a compression-box hermetically closed, which is here shown as cylindrical in shape, the heads P of which consist of iiexible sheet metal and are sustained in their normal position by the outward action of t-he spring Q, coiled about the plug R, which has a limited downward movement, so that when the head is forced inward, as hereinafter described, it will not be strained past a certain limit. This plug consists of two sections, the upper one having a socket formed therein, while the lower section is provided with a shank which extends into said socket, thus giving guidance to the spring Q, as well as serving to transmit the action ot' the spring to the heads of the compression-box.

The incandescent lamp is surrounded bya glass globe S, cemented or otherwise secured to the head-block, and a valve T of any suitable construction is arranged for the admission of gas to the interior of this globe. From this it will be seen that when carbonicacid gas or other suitable extinguishing fluid is forced within the globe under sufficient pressure this pressure will be exerted upon the head P of the compression-box, thereby deiiecting said head inward, so as to permit the spring-strip I'I to hearagainst the contactpoint G. This will malte the circuit and permit the lamp to burn, but should at any time this pressure be removed the spring Q will force the head P outward, which in turn will force the strip H out of contact with the point G, thereby breaking the circuit and extinguishing the lamp.

When my improved lamp is placed in an atmosphere surcharged with explosive gases and from any cause the globe S and incandescent Iamp be broken, the pressure which had previously maintained the electric circuit being destroyed this circuit will be broken and at the same time the carbonio-acid gas will so surround the film as to exclude the inflowing of the explosive gases until the lm has cooled below a point where it can ignite ICO said gases. Thus a perfect safety-lamp will be provided which will preclude the possibility of explosions in mines and the like.

One of the principal advantages of my present improvement is that every part of the lamp is hermeticall y sealed and therefore the pressure created therein by the extinguishing-gas will not deteriorate, since there is no avenue of escape therefor, and as the compression-box is wholly of metal and located within the globe there is no 'liability of said box failingto actin stopping the electricalcurrent when the pressure is removed. Another advantage of this improvement is its simplicity and cheapness of construction and that there are no valves or rubber diaphragms to deteriorate and become useless.

By practical test it has been found that the construction just described gives most sat-isfactory results in its operation, and it is obvious that the construction shown in Figs. 3 and 4 will also accomplish the desired result, and is as follows:

d represents the compression-box, which is of considerably greater diameter than the compression-box in the first-described construction, and is provided with t-he diaphragmheads b and c, forced apart by the action of the spring d, whichis coiled around the plug c similar to the iirst-described plug, so as to prevent the collapsing of the diaphragms when undue pressure is brought to bear thereon. This compression-box is preferably located slightly to one side of the head-block of the lamp and serves to force downward the spring f, which is insulated from contact with com pression-box, the latter having depending therefrom the incandescent lamp g, so that this lamp will have a slight movement when the diaphragms of the compressionbox are forced inward. Each of the diaphragms of the box d has secured thereto the cleats t', the upper one of which is adapted to enter the slot j, formed in the bottom of the socket 7c, which latteris secured within a recess formed in the head-block, the arrangement of which is clearly shown in Fig. 5. The lower cleatz' is adapted to pass`through the slot Z, formed in the springf, so that when these cleats are thus passed through the two slots and the compression-box turns upon its axis they will liev crosswise of the slots, thus securely connecting the compression-box to the cleats at the top and to the spring f at the bottom, so that the movement of the diaphragm of this box will cause the spring f also to move, which in turn will raise or lower the incandescent lamp, as before set forth.

-h is a contact-point with which the spring facts in conjunction, and the remainder of this construction is similar in operation as that described in. connection with Figs. l and 2. This last construction has an advantage for certa-in uses in that the compression-box therein contained is of larger diameter and thus more readily affected by lamp-pressures than would be the case with the first-named con struction.

I do not wish to limit myself to the kind of gas or the amount of .pressure within the globe, since these may be varied to suit the special requirements and any extinguishing fluid will serve the purpose.

Having thus fully described this invention, what is claimed as new and useful isl. In a device of the character described, a compression -box having flexible heads, means in said compression-box for forcing the flexible heads apart and limiting their compression consisting of a plug formed in two sections, one having a socket and the other having a shank to it said socket, and a spring located between the sections of the plug, as and for the purpose described.

2. In a device of the character described, a head-block, a compression-box located in a recess thereof, said compression-box composed of a cylinder having fiexible heads, one bearing on the bottom of the recess of the head-block, a plug between the flexible heads composed of two sections one having a socket and the other having a shank to fit said socket and a spiral spring forcing said sections apart, a spring-strip secured to the head-block and bearing on the other flexible head and a contact-point with which the spring-strip is adapted to make and break an electric circuitl by means of the action of the compression-block, as and for the purpose described.

3. In a device of the character described, a head-block having a recess therein, a plate fitting in the recess having a slot, a compression-block composed of a cylinder having flexible heads, a plug fitting between the heads formed of two sections, one having a socket and the other having a shank to rit the socket, and a spiral spring located between the sections of the plug, a cleat on the upper head of the box tting in the slot of the plate, a cleat on the lower head of the box, a spring carrying an incandescent lamp secured on the head of the block and having a slot to engage the second cleat and a contact-point adapted to be engaged by the spring, as and for the purpose described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto affixed 'my signature in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

XVILLIAM VAEGEI..

llfitnesses:

S. S. WILLIAMsoN, MORTIMER A. JONES.

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